The subject matter disclosed herein relates generally to inflatable vehicle airbag cushions, and more particularly to tethers for inflatable vehicle airbag cushions, especially for vehicle steering wheels.
Vehicles, particularly passenger vehicles, often include one or more airbags to protect the occupant(s) during crashes. In particular, one or more inflatable cushions, typically referred to as airbags, inflate to protect and/or restrain the head and torso of the occupant(s). For example, steering wheels for vehicles, such as steering wheel/driver airbag assemblies often include an inflatable airbag for protecting the driver during a crash or other collision.
Vehicle airbags also often include one or more tethers attached thereto that can restrain the extent of the inflation or deformation of the airbag. These tethers are attached to the main panels of the airbag with straight sew lines. These straight sew lines concentrate the snap load during deployment (when the air inflates) on a single thread strand in one direction. Thus, the straight sew lines do not necessarily provide an airbag with robust attachment of the tether(s), which may result in failure during deployment. For example, during inflation, one or more straight sew lines may become detached from the airbag panel, causing the airbag to expand beyond desired limits and potentially increase the likelihood of injury to the occupant(s) from the airbag deployment. Accordingly, known tether attachment methods for airbags may not provide adequate coupling resulting in failure of the attachment.